481 



chano^ing condition of man, and because technological capabilities for 

 modifying either man or his environment are continually evolving and 

 changing, it becomes necessary to make frequent new detenninations 

 as to which specific tasks of science and technologj^ are the most urgent 

 and deserve the largest allocations of resources. 



(5) Estahlhliment of related hasic and swppoHing reesarch goals 

 and priorjtjes. — Every environmental incompatibility to be corrected 

 requires initially the selection of a preferred course of action from 

 various possible alternatives. In all cases, this selection calls for more 

 research. In addition, further research is necessary to relate the prob- 

 lem to the broader environment, to secure detailed information about 

 the nature and mechanisms of the incompatibility, and to refine tech- 

 nologically the course of action to correct it. 



(6) Applied tecTinological system hidlding. — The effective applica- 

 tion of technology in the solving of important social problems — the 

 correcting of important environmental incompatibilities — suggests 

 that a systematic approach be taken. The direct and indirect impacts 

 of the preferred course of action need to be incorporated into a cost/ 

 effectiveness analysis. The exploitation of opportunities for additional 

 benefits needs to be explored. The total technological package needs 

 to be assembled conceptually and looked at as a" complete, working 

 entity. 



(7) Technological assessment. — Before, during, and after the build- 

 ing of ia technological system, it is necessary to identify and study the 

 consequences of its operation. The objective is to improve the man- 

 agement of the total technolog-ical society, including the minimizing 

 of consequences which are unintended, unanticipated, and unwanted. 

 Assessment includes forecasting and prediction, retroactive evalua- 

 tion, and current monitoring and analysis. Measurements involve non- 

 economic, subjective values as well as direct, tangible quantifications. 

 Above all, assessment requires that catastrophic consequences of each 

 ]>roposed new technologv^ be foreseen and avoided before the new tech- 

 nology becomes entrenched in the socioeconomic complex of human 

 orgianization. 



(8) Technological control.- — In the application of a new technologi- 

 cal system, there are usually some effects that offer short-term eco- 

 nomic benefits at the cost of serious long-term social disadvantages. 

 Some effects may benefit one social group at disproportionately greater 

 costs to another, or to society at large. Or the use of the system with- 

 out certain explicit precautions may impose unacceptable risks on 

 society. In order to exploit the benefits of the system, it is therefore 

 necessary to establish and apply methods of directing, encouraging, or 

 inliibiting aspects of its technology. Control may have a considerable 

 scientific content. It may also need to apply the findings of the social 

 sciences — ^the measurement of human satisfactions and dissatisfactions, 

 the design and application of economic controls, and the objective char- 

 acterizations of levels of human well-being. 



(9) Technological transfer. — Successful introduction of a useful 

 technology at one point in the social system can serve usefully as a 

 practical test demonstration. It may generate a desire to have the 



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